🔵 By Micah Matthews. Photo by lauragrafie.
Today I was asked a profound question by one of the men I work out with. We were discussing the pros and cons of prisons in America, and while having this discussion one of the men stated that mass incarceration in America is a civil rights issue. Instantly, I thought to myself, “Man that makes sense!” Yet I found myself reluctant to speak because such a topic, although understandable to me, I had not enough information to form an accurate, factual opinion. Yet… I thought to myself, “There must be more to this question.” Oh was I right to have such a thought.”
After working out and coming back to the cell house, I approached another brother and asked him the same question. “Is mass incarceration in America a civil rights or human rights violation?” He listened intently and I could see it on his face as he stared off into the distance. Something was brewing and formulating within his mind. Upon further pondering, he replied, “Man, this shit is a human rights violation!” Upon studying the seriousness of his face, I asked him, “Why did you say that?” His reply was simply, “Man, they sending human beings to prison for crazy amounts of time for committing small crimes, and on top of that no crime is given equal punishment!”
As I listened to him, and reminding myself of the civil rights answer I had heard earlier, I thought it only right I do some research and come up with an opinion of my own. My first step was to look up both definitions, the first- Civil-Rights – reads as: guarantees of equal social opportunities and equal protection under the law, regardless of race, religion, or other personal characteristics. The next definition that I searched for was – Human Rights. And it reads: rights that belong to an individual or group of individuals simply for being human, or as a consequence of inherent human vulnerability, or because they are requisite to the possibility of a just society. Whatever their theoretical justification, human rights refer to a wide continuum of values or capabilities thought to enhance human agency or protect human interests and declared to be universal in character, in some sense equally claimed for all human beings, present and future.
After digesting both definitions, I asked myself which one clearly defines a violation that I am experiencing. My answer was empathically and unequivocally this, “Mass Incarceration is a human rights violation!” You see… this diabolical prison system had denied me and millions of other women and men the right to simply be human! Inside this place we know as the Iowa state penitentiary there are numerous atrocities committed against human beings labeled “prisoners”. Once you enter the prison system, no matter the crime, it seems as though you are stamped with demeaning epithets such as, “Offender, Incarcerated, Individual, Thug, Incorrigible, Convict, etc.” These titles automatically give another human beings (prison staff, who seem to be uncivil in their actions) the leeway to treat those of us as though we are 3/5ths of a human! Now compound this with the fact that this dehumanizing method is utilized throughout the entire United States of America.
So much so that millions of women and men come into the department of corrections somewhat sane and sociable; yet when their sentence is up they return to society insane and anti-social! How is it that a system that is meant to correct and rehabilitate has regressed into a system that has mastered the technique of churning out women and men who are worse off from their prison experience? It would seem as though those in charge of this system are the ones who need a lesson in civility. Why those of us incarcerated need an opportunity to be considered human.
It may sound simple, but to be treated as a human in the department of corrections is in and of itself a fairy-tale. So I would say to anyone listening, before we worry about civil rights in prison, we should focus on the tenets of human rights. Men who are incarcerated should be treated as men and given the tools to thrive in a society that is desperately thirsting for leadership. Incarcerated women should be treated as women and given the tools needed to thrive as well, because most of the human beings inside these prisons will be returning home one day. The question is, do I want these human beings to return to society with the mindset of a human or do I want these human beings to return to society as savages? Who would you rather have living next door to you?